Thursday, September 8, 2011

First Camping Trip!

For the last 5 years, we've gotten together with David's family for a Labor Day Getaway. This year, we went camping!

Dave and I have always loved tent camping, but I was not ready to brave tent camping with toddlers. We had a little cabin instead =). Tent camping will come in the future.


My two greatest fears about this trip were 1. the campfire 2. sleeping troubles

I am beyond pleased to report neither were a problem! Of course we had far more adults than kids so we were all able to keep an eye out while the campfire was going. That was SO helpful. And when we first got there, before the fire was even going, we took the twins over near it and explained it was a "no-no". After that whenever Abbey or Luke got even within 4 feet of it, they'd wag their pointer finger back and forth and shake their heads!

As for sleep, mercifully, both kids slept through the night both nights. Abbey had a hard time going to sleep both nights, but we (and by "we" I mean David) remained patient and just stayed with her until she was comfortable since it was a new place.

We stuck to their bedtime routine as close as possible, but also added in an evening stroll in jammies to help "settle in"...=)



Pretty sweet digs...(complete with blankets covering the windows, I do whatever needs to be done to insure good sleep! =) )



During the day we stayed busy playing with family.

Luke giving Grandma some love...



David playing Badminton with his niece and nephew (and Luke on his back)...



Abigail and Poppa reading books fireside...



Daddy loaning his baby girl his beanie on a cold morning...



Something else I was nervous about was ALL THE DIRT. I kept telling myself to just embrace it. Let 'em get as dirty as they want. And boy did they.


Abbey gifting Grandma handfuls of dirt...


CHECK OUT THE DIRT ON MY GIRL...


Luke getting some lovin' from Poppa...


Lucas and his cousin playing IN THE DIRT...


My kids were beyond THRILLED to get to explore so much...



I have fewer pictures of Luke than I do his sister because he was on the go the entire time we were there. He just ran around like crazy! I've told you before, his Love Language is FREEDOM!!!



Bundled up and ready to head to Uncle Tony's camping spot (where the coffee is) for breakfast...


The cousins had such a great time playing together. It made me so happy to watch!



Fun was had by all...


Our first camping trip was a SUCCESS!!! Hooray!

7 comments:

Vanessa's Dad said...

Yay! Some of the best times from my childhood were family tent camping vacations. It was not so much the tents or the camping, but getting away from it all... together for a fun time. THAT was fun.

Ya can't help but smile at the JOY from this blog. Luke & Abbey have learned that the Universe is a wonderful place, and that's a great thing to learn. Good job, parents!

LOVE,
GRAND DAD

Jen S. said...

Looks like you all had a great time! That's awesome :)

Lillian said...

These pictures are so cute! =) I was thinking about going camping soon, to celebrate the end of summer with my family. Where did you go camping at?

Lauren said...

How fun!!!!! Adorable pictures!!! :) Miss you, friend!! :)

Anonymous said...

I have enjoyed following you guys--thank you for all the pics. We simply must get a good camera. We have a kiddy digital!! Not good resolution. Truly, your vacation was a success--and good for you to let Abby get dirty!

I have recently joined a Christian Writers Marketing Network. One of the members writes about miscarriage. I don't know if you have been able to keep in touch with any of the people you went through that period with or not or if you even ever want to think about such things again, but here is a website. You would be better able to access the value of the info--just passing it along. Feel free to do whatever with it. http://stillbirthday.com/2011/09/04/gods-timing-is-perfect/

Your loves are just adorable! Aunt Carol

Aunt Carol said...

Dirt is good for you! Looks like a really great time and the start of another tradition.

Once Upon A Time said...

Sounds -and looks- like you had a great time!